The 10 most newsworthy stories of the 2014-2015 school year

Skim through this list and catch up on all that you may have missed

The Dentistry scandal shot Dal into the national spotlight, with news crews from across the country overtaking campus during winter break. The Dentistry scandal resulted from the discovery of a series of Facebook posts by the “Class of DDS 2015 Gentlemen’s club.” The posts involved comments about “hate fucking” members of their class, and 13 students were suspended from working in Dal’s dental clinic as a result. Those suspensions have since been lifted, but this story isn’t over yet.

2. Increased Voter Turnout In DSU Elections

After a dismal voter turnout of slightly over 10% of the student body in the Dalhousie Student Union (DSU) elections of 2014, this year’s voter turnout nearly doubled, at 18%. The 2015 results show that roughly 1,400 more students voted this year than in 2014.

3. DSU Leaves Students Nova Scotia

The DSU decided not to renew its membership with the association representing student unions throughout the province. Throughout the year, DSU President Ramz Aziz expressed his desire for the DSU to pursue independent advocacy.

4. Dalhousie Decides Not To Divest From Fossil Fuels

Activist group Divest Dalhousie campaigned fiercely for Dalhousie to divest its endowment fund from companies with the largest carbon holdings. On November 25, Dal’s Board of Governors voted to accept a board committee’s suggestions that they not divest, with a final vote of 15 in favour for rejecting divestment, five in favour of divestment and two abstentions.

5. Day of Action

The 2015 Day of Action on Feb. 4 saw hundreds of Dal and King’s students take to the streets, joining students from other post-secondary institutions to demonstrate their desire for more accessible education.

6. Dalhousie Men’s Basketball Win AUS Crown

Entering the AUS men’s basketball championships, the Tigers placed fifth and were slated to be a sure-fire first round knock out. No one expected what would happen next. A quarterfinal-winning buzzer-beater, a win over the eighth-ranked team in the country, and three come from behind victories later, and the Tigers somehow, someway, found themselves on top of the AUS. It was one for the history books, to say the least.

7. Accessibility at Dal Takes “Unprecedented Hit”

The proposed new bikes lanes along University Avenue will cause the loss of nine wheelchair-accessible parking spots. The university has proposed that these parking spots be moved to side-streets, but irregular snow clearance and increased distances to on-campus buildings would make accessing these parking spots extremely difficult for wheelchair users and people with disabilities.

8. Dawgfather Tweets Controversy

Studley Campus’ iconic hot-dog vendor started tweeting anti-Semitic jokes after a terrorist attack occurred at the French magazine Charlie Hebdo. The reaction towards the Dawgfather’s tweets led to his operations temporarily ceasing, but order has since been restored to the curb in front of the Student Union Building. The Halifax police looked into the situation and will not be charging the Dawgfather for these tweets.

9. Hazing Makes Its Return

It’s a topic that’s all too familiar at Dalhousie. The hazing bug stung again this year, with the latest victim being both of Dalhousie’s men’s rugby teams. The clubs had their seasons suspended indefinitely following confirmed allegations that senior team members participated in hazing activities at an off-campus party. This all coming two years after Dal’s women’s hockey team had their season suspended midway through for the same offence. Yikes.

10. Professional Students Want Their Own Union

The Dalhousie Association of Graduate and Professional Students is advocating for graduate and professional students to form their own association after disaffiliating from the DSU. In an interview with the Gazette, Dalhousie Law Students’ Society president Anthony Rosborough said that the DSU is more focused on taking stances on political issues than on helping students.